11
A pale hand reached out from the bushes, palm open, with an antique–looking key lying quietly in it.
The queen lowered her voice.
“The first room on the left, that’s where all the truth and secrets are.”
I took the key, and the queen grasped my hand, her long nails digging into the back of my hand.
“Don’t trust Henry!
“Don’t love him!”
W
The bushes were as tall as a person, completely hiding the queen’s figure. I was about to speak when suddenly hurried footsteps came from the other side, along with the exclamations of several maids.
“Your Majesty, why did you come here? Quick, come back with me.
“The prince will be angry if he sees you. Hurry up.”
The queen was pulled away by one of the maids, while the other two remained, perhaps thinking no one was around, and started whispering.
“The queen’s condition is getting worse and worse.”
“Yes, last time she suddenly went crazy and tried to stab the Chancellor with a knife in front of so many guests. If the prince hadn’t taken the Chancellor away, who knows what might have happened!”
“The Chancellor is so unlucky. He’s such a good person. Fortunately, the knife wound wasn’t deep.”
“We haven’t seen the Chancellor for a long time recently. He’s probably afraid of the queen’s unstable condition and doesn’t dare
9:08 AM
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“We haven’t seen the Chancellor for a long time recently. He’s probably afraid of the queen’s unstable condition and doesn’t dare
to come to the palace anymore.”
The more I listened, the more confused I became. Wasn’t the Chancellor dead? I saw the prince kill him with my own eyes, and the king even issued an obituary. How could these maids say nothing had happened to the Chancellor?
As the maids walked away talking, I sat in the chair lost in thought, feeling that the whole situation was mysterious and unclear, not knowing who to believe.
I clutched the key in my hand.
Never mind, I’ll go to the room the queen mentioned first and see what this so–called truth is all about.
